Summerland

Summerland (2020) is a British drama written and directed by Jessica Swale — watch it online on iFILM. Alice is a writer living alone on the chalk cliffs of Kent, determined to keep the world at arm's length. It's wartime. A London evacuee named Frank arrives at her door, and she immediately sets about sending him somewhere else.

He stays. And his presence begins to pull up things Alice buried long ago: a love she lost, and the choices she made in the aftermath. Gemma Arterton plays Alice across two timelines — young and older — with a stillness that makes the gap between them feel true. Penelope Wilton and Tom Courtenay appear in the later scenes, and Gugu Mbatha-Raw plays the woman Alice loved.

The film moves slowly by design. The Kent coastline — wide skies, white cliffs, wind — is as much a character as any of the people. Stream Summerland (2020) online on iFILM.